February 29, 2008, 2:23PM

On Feb. 28, the Pew Center on the States released a report that shows, for the first time in U.S. history, over one in 100 adults incarcerated in the country. The report also highlights a disparity in inmate age, gender and ethnicity. For example, one in 15 black men over the age of 18 are incarcerated, while one in 106... Full story »

February 29, 2008, 1:32PM

In a recent A-1 news story ("Citizen Soapbox," Feb. 26), the Times-Picayune profiled the newly formed Citizen Participation Process, a joint venture of the New Orleans community groups Neighborhood Partnership Network and Committee for a Better New Orleans/ Metropolitan Area Committee. The groups have recently announced a series of upcoming forums-- which will focus on giving citizen voice to decisions... Full story »

February 25, 2008, 11:29AM

On Saturday, Hillary Clinton addressed the 2008 State of the Black Union conference, held at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans. The event featured panel discussions about race, the superdelegate system, health care and the economy. Presidential candidates Barack Obama, John McCain and Mike Huckabee declined invitations to speak, though Obama offered to send his wife,... Full story »

January 30, 2008, 11:11AM

The New Orleans Chapter of the Young Friends Society announced the launch of a website dedicated to the works housed the George & Leah McKenna Museum of African American Art as the museum prepares for its grand reopening on the weekend of Feb. 22 and 24. The new site, www.themckennamuseum.com can be accessed by clicking here. Full story »

January 28, 2008, 7:31AM

Civil rights leader and former state and national NAACP president Rupert Richardson died Thursday while decorating her new house, her son told The Advocate. Word of her death trickled to the North Shore over the weekend with mention of this Lake Charles native at many church services this Sunday, a Covington NAACP member said. The community mouns Ms. Richardson.... Full story »

January 21, 2008, 2:24PM

On a day when the world reflects on one of this nation's greatest spiritual and political leaders, a daughter of the South is honored for the voice and vision she lends to the multitudes who continue the quest to make the dream voiced by Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. a reality. Olympia Vernon -- a Pulitzer-prize nominated writer, social... Full story »

December 24, 2007, 11:45AM

On Dec. 21, the New Orleans City Council voted unanimously for the demolition of 4,500 low-income apartments in the city's four largest public-housing projects. View the Times-Picayune's photos from the contentious hearings, and video footage of police pepper-spraying and tasering protesters outside City Hall. View the New York Times' audio slideshow for a background on the demolitions, and New... Full story »

December 05, 2007, 9:27PM

AP reported this week that Mychal Bell, one of the "Jena Six" teens originally charged with attempted murder for a Dec. 2006 schoolyard beating, has agreed to plead guilty to the juvenile charge of second-degree battery. Bell has spent most of 2007 in jail, including 10 months awaiting trial on charges that led to a conviction of aggravated second-degree battery... Full story »

November 26, 2007, 12:36PM

Low income residents can learn how to make best use of a United Way program that would match personal savings at a rate of up to 4 to 1 when purchasing a car. The presentation will be held on Dec. 11 presentation by Odessa Adams-Payne who will address prospective participants prior to this month's NAACP meeting at the Bethel Reform... Full story »

October 30, 2007, 7:48PM

Neighborhoods Partnership Network, the New Orleans neighborhood collaborative and publisher of The Trumpet, is teaming with NOLA YURP (Young Urban Rebuilding Professionals), the social networking site devoted to connecting young professionals from diverse backgrounds in New Orleans, to host a forum on race and class in work and community spaces. The forum-- to be held Wed., Nov. 7 from 6-8... Full story »

October 29, 2007, 8:42PM

Two weeks after a Louisiana district judge released Mychal Bell on bail, the 'Jena Six' teen returned to a juvenile detention center on Oct. 11 for probation charges unrelated to his arrest for a Dec. 2006 fight at Jena High School apparently fueled by a noose-hanging. Bell's attorney, Louis Scott--a Monroe native who helped overturn convictions of battery and conspiracy... Full story »

October 25, 2007, 9:15AM

"The Noose: An American Nightmare" airs tonight on CNN, at 7 p.m. CST. This symbol of racial hatred-- one of the strongest reminders of slavery and the ensuing Jim Crow period of U.S. history -- recently reappeared in Jena, La., opening up a national dialog on race, civil rights and criminal justice. Recently, more nooses have appeared in New... Full story »

September 29, 2007, 11:37PM

Head over to the Times-Picayune on nola.com to view an excellent video of the 20,000-strong protest march in Jena, La. Here are some other news resources for background information on the "Jena Six:" Full story »

September 27, 2007, 11:38PM

AP is reporting that Mychal Bell-- one of six black teenagers arrested for the alleged Dec. 2006 beating of a white student, several months after nooses were discovered hanging from a "whites-only" tree at Jena High School in Jena, La.--was released today on $45,000 bail, following District Attorney Reed Walter's decision to abandon all adult charges against the 17-year-old. Earlier... Full story »

August 27, 2007, 1:06AM

During her largely improvised closing argument on June 14, federal prosecutor Paige Fitzgerald stumbled upon one of the most poetic moments in the James Ford Seale federal kidnapping trial--a trial that began on Jan. 29, with Seale's bond hearing, and ended on Aug. 24, with a sentencing of three life terms for the now-72-year-old Klansman. Full story »